Baby proofing your home when you have a toddler is a no-brainer.
That said, most parents tend to overlook the most used rooms in the house, which is the bathroom.
Parents assume that the bathroom is not an immediate hazard, as their child will always be supervised when going in there, but that isn’t the case.
It takes one minute for a toddler to wander off, or maybe you look away for a second to pick up the towel that you dropped on the floor, which can allow for accidents to happen.
Today, we are going to focus on baby proofing your bathroom with the following tips and ideas.
Lock the door
This goes without saying; you need to keep the bathroom door locked at all times. But what you might want to consider is installing a lock on the outside of the bathroom door.
This limits the access to your child, to begin with.
There are numerous types of locks, but the easiest would be to have a chain lock or a bolt lock high up on the door, out of the reach of your wandering toddler.
Bathtub safety
Beyond child supervision during bath time, which is essential, there are other ways to ensure that you minimize potential accidents. Install a non-slip rubber mat or sticker on the bottom of the tub to avoid slips and falls.
Another potentially dangerous section of your bathtub is the water tap or spout.
Your child can be prone to head bumps on the sharp spout that can be both painful and dangerous, so look to add a rubber or silicone cover over it.
These covers come in a lot of different shapes and colors to make it fun and interesting for your baby.
Finally, consider installing a tub separator in your bath.
This looks like a mini bathtub and minimizes the room that your child has to move around and can even allow you to get in with your baby without getting wet.
This also allows you to save on water by using less as you don’t fill the entire bathtub.
Check your water
While on the subject of water, an aspect that is overlooked or can be completely unknown is to ensure your child’s well-being by checking your water’s pH level.
This means checking your water quality to see how acidic or alkaline it is.
This is important as high levels of either can contribute to several skin irritations in your child.
Our water is treated with fluoride and chlorine, and too many of them will alter the skin’s pH level that ideally should be around pH 5.5.
High acidity can cause skin conditions such as dermatitis, psoriasis, eczema, and rosacea, while water that is too alkaline will make the skin dry, flaky, dull, and sensitive.
Use a simple pH meter to determine the pH level of your water and ensure that it will not harm your child’s health.
Water temperature
Make sure that your water heater is set to be no more than 120 degrees Fahrenheit.
Lower water temperatures help avoid any scalding or burn your baby may be exposed to due to overly hot water.
You can also have a water thermometer on hand to check for water temperature before bathing your baby.
Unplug appliances
Like most of us, your bathroom might have a lot of appliances set up.
These pose a huge hazard and should always be unplugged and stowed away properly while not in use.
As for large appliances such as washing machines and dryers, always keep them unplugged and try to have the cords hidden away—preferably behind the machines—and keep their corresponding sockets covered with plug covers.
For your smaller tools, like hair curlers, flat irons, and electronic shavers, put them away in baby proofed bathroom cabinets and drawers.
Plug outlet covers
Speaking of electrical hazards, install plug outlet covers in all the sockets in your bathroom, especially the ones near the sink.
These will keep your baby from touching the socket, which can be a great threat due to both water and electricity being present.
These covers will hide the socket, but can still allow you to have easy access to the outlet.
Baby proof cabinets
Toddlers and babies are very curious by nature and will try and get into everything they see.
So, your cabinets must be locked at all times.
First, the easiest way to keep your child out of the cabinets is to fix them with locks.
There are many different kinds available, such as magnet locks or cord locks.
These will be very difficult for your child to open, and at the same time, they won’t be much of a hassle to you.
Hide medication and supplies
Once you have baby proofed your cabinets, use them to store all items that can be a potential hazard to your child.
These items are all the medications and prescription drugs, toiletries including nail clippers, scissors, and tweezers, personal hygiene products such as shampoos, conditioners, shower gels, or soaps.
While not an immediate danger in themselves, if your child drinks them or gets them in their eyes, they could do a lot of damage.
This also includes all cleaning and bleaching agents and detergents, whether for laundry or house cleaning.
Remove all steps
You wouldn’t necessarily have a ladder in the bathroom, but rather, you need to remove any object that would act as a ladder or stepping stone for your child.
Items such as a small laundry basket, a stool, a portable shelving unit can be used by your kid to step in and gain access to the higher cabinets and bathroom counters.
Either keep them hidden or plan to remove them altogether.
By applying these baby proofing methods to your bathroom, you will have covered major steps in ensuring your child’s safety.
We tend to overlook the bathroom as an important part of the house, as we don’t imagine leaving our child unsupervised; however, being safe rather than sorry will go a long way toward achieving some peace of mind, especially when it comes to your child’s health and safety.
